Chapter 116: Negotiation ①

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Translator: Soafp

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At my question, the president’s eyes darted away.

“Haa… To tell you the truth, I’ve been at my wit’s end over that matter as well.”

Hesitating, the president began explaining why he’d had no choice but to borrow from the loan shark.

Most of it, however, was already exactly what the detective’s report had led me to expect.

Honestly, all I heard were excuses.

“I see. Starting a business is certainly no easy task, so I understand how you feel. That said, how exactly do you intend to resolve this?”

“Uh… W-Well, it’s not something that can be solved overnight…”

Apparently, he hadn’t come to this meeting prepared to face the issue.

If anything, it seemed he’d hoped to talk me into accepting the situation.

“I fully understand your concerns. Even so, we’ve been taking every possible precaution to ensure the idols under our agency never come into contact with the yakuza.”

“Specifically?”

“F-For now, our revenue has been increasing recently, so we’ve been keeping up with the repayments. As long as we’re paying them back, even the yakuza wouldn’t do anything reckless, would they?”

“So if your income dries up again and you can no longer make payments, you’re saying you won’t be able to protect them?”

“N-No. If that happens… even if they sell me off in their place, I’ll protect those girls until the very end.”

As if determination alone could make that happen.

In the end, his entire plan amounted to paying them whenever money came in.

Beyond that, he had no real solution.

“So, in other words, you have no concrete plan to resolve this. Is that a fair assessment?”

“N-No, that’s not…”

The president ran his fingers through his hair.

“W-We’ll increase our revenue through Jirai-chan Syndrome’s activities… and once we’ve paid everything off, somehow…”

“And when will that be? Besides, you’re dealing with the yakuza, aren’t you? Are they really the kind of people who’ll simply accept the words ‘paid in full’?”

“E-Even if you say that… I don’t know of any other way to deal with debt…”

If this were an ordinary loan, that might be true.

But this wasn’t an ordinary loan.

And the damage had already spread to Jirai-chan Syndrome.

I deliberately let out a long sigh.

“So ultimately, you have no concrete plan. You can’t even give me a date by which the debt will be settled.”

“I-I’m frustrated too! It’s not like I wanted to rely on those people…!”

“I’m sure that’s true. But you aren’t the only one being put at risk. We, too, could end up branded as a company supporting an organization with ties to organized crime. Why did you hide something this serious from us?”

“W-Well… it’s not as though there’s a law requiring us to disclose it…”

“So unless a court settles whether such a law exists, you won’t be satisfied?”

“…”

The conversation kept going in circles.

Rather than simply reaching an impasse, I was beginning to think this man was even more incompetent than I’d imagined.

The manager was probably the one who had done most of the work to build Jirai-chan Syndrome into what it was.

“I’m left with no choice but to conclude that you have no intention of severing your financial ties with organized crime. In that case, we’ll make our own decision and inform Kokoa-san, the other members, and all of their parents of the situation.”

“W-What did you say?! By what right do you think you can do that?!”

The president slammed his hand on the table.

“You’re only a sponsor! That’s completely overstepping your authority!”

“We’re trying to resolve this peacefully if at all possible.”

“How is that peaceful?! All you’re doing is making the situation worse!”

“At the very least, it’s more discreet than leaking it to the media, wouldn’t you agree?”

Both the manager and the president visibly flinched.

The president swallowed hard, his hands trembling.

“…Was that a threat?”

“Don’t you think this is also the perfect opportunity for you to cut ties with the yakuza?”

“…What?”

“It’s extremely difficult for an individual to stand up to organized crime. That’s exactly why you’ve found yourself in this predicament.”

“…Y-Yes…”

The frightening thing about the yakuza wasn’t merely that they used violence.

It wasn’t just that ordinary people couldn’t match their numbers or resources.

The biggest problem was that they were people who couldn’t be reasoned with and had no regard for the law.

If that was the case, then there was only one realistic option left.

“Now that Jirai-chan Syndrome is starting to attract public attention, this is your chance to put public opinion and the authorities on your side.”

“…H-How do you mean?”

“It’s simple. Once people learn that Jirai-chan Syndrome is connected to organized crime—and that it’s an idol group with junior high school students among its members—do you really think the public will stay silent?”

“T-That may be true…”

“And once public opinion starts moving, public institutions like the police won’t be able to ignore it. At that point, the yakuza won’t be able to act so freely anymore. They’ll have no choice but to think about how the police will respond.”

In Japan, the greatest monopoly on legitimate force belonged not to the yakuza, but to the state.

Ultimately, the only way to oppose violence was with an even greater power.

“I-I understand what you’re saying, but if that happens, our agency’s reputation will suffer as well…”

“Mr. President, which matters more to you? Your agency’s image, or the safety of the idols under your care?”

“I-It’s not that… But if our reputation is damaged, it will become much harder to secure contracts. The girls can only earn money because we bring in work.”

That was a fair point.

After all, the thing large corporations hated most was risk.

Even so, no amount of money could outweigh Kokoa-san’s safety.

“If you suffer financial losses because of this, we’ll compensate your agency directly.”

“W-Why would you go that far? No matter how I look at it, I can’t imagine this benefits your company enough to justify such an expense…”

Ordinarily, any normal sponsor would simply walk away.

No one would voluntarily involve themselves in something this troublesome.

Especially not while pouring enormous sums of money into it.

For the time being, I gave him the explanation I’d prepared.

“Our business operates primarily in the American market. The United States takes crimes involving minors extremely seriously. If Kokoa-san or any of the underage members become involved in an organized crime incident, the damage to our company would be immeasurable.”

“I-I see…”

“And besides…”

This time, I allowed a little of my true feelings to show.

“I genuinely want Kokoa-san—and all the idols who work so hard—to be rewarded for their efforts. The thought that all their hard work could end with them becoming victims of crime… it’s simply too cruel.”

“…”

The president lowered his head uncomfortably.

Perhaps there was still a little conscience left in him.

In a quiet voice, he said,

“…I agree. As an agency, we’ve always wanted our idols’ hard work to be rewarded…”

“Mr. President, we already know everything.”

Looking him straight in the eye, I continued.

“We know that Ayano of Jirai-chan Syndrome was set up with methamphetamine, and that you knowingly allowed her to be coerced into sleeping with clients under that pretext. You knew everything… and chose to look the other way, didn’t you?”